49th  Congress, 
1st  Session. 


SENATE. 


(  Report  70, 


IN  THE  SENATE  OF  THE  UNITED  STATES. 


AniiL  2D,  1886. — Ordered  to  be  priuted. 


Mr.  Brown,  from  the  Committee  on  Woman  Suffrage,  submitted  the 

following 

VIEWS  OF  THE  MINORITY: 

[To  accompany  S.  Res.  5.]  ^ 

The  undersi<^necl  minority  of  the  Committee  of  the  Senate  on  Woman 
Sntfrage,  to  whom  was  referred  Senate  Resohition  No.  5,  proposing  an 
amentiment  to  the  (Constitution  of  the  United  States  to  grant  the  right 
to  vote  to  tbe  women  of  the  United  States,  beg  leave  to  submit  the  ful- 
fowing  minority  report,  consisting  of  extracts  from  a  littk^  volume  enti- 
tled, ^'Letters  from  a  Chimney  Corner,"  written  by  a  highly  (•nltivatcd 
lady,  ]\Irs.  ,  of  Chicago.  This  gifted  lady  has  discnssed  the  ques- 
tion with  so  much  clearness  and  force  that  we  make  no  apology  to  the 
Senate  for  substituting  quotations  from  her  book  in  ])lace  of  anything  we 
might  produce.  We  quote  first  from  chai)ter  ."5,  which  is  entitled,  "  The 
value  of  suffrage  to  women  much  overestimated." 

The  fair  authoress  says  : 

If  women  were  to  be  considered  in  their  highest  and  final  estate  as  merely  individ- 
ual beings,  and  if  the  right,  to  the  baUot  were  to  be  conce(UHl  to  man  as  an  individ- 
nal,  it  might  perhaps  be  logically  argued  that  women  also  possessed  the  inherent 
right  to  vote.  But  tVoin  the  oldest  limes,  and  throngh  all  the  history  of  the  race,  has 
rnn  the  glimmer  of  an  idea,  more  or  less  distingnishable  in  different  ages  and  nnder 
different  circumstances,  that  neither  man  nor  woman,  is,  as  such,  individual  ;  that 
neither  being  is  ot  itself  a  whole,  a  unit,  but-  each  rec^uires  to  be  supplemented  by  tlio 
other  before  its  true  strnetural  integrity  can  l)e  aclreved.  Of  this  idea,  the  science  of 
botany  furnishes  the.  most  [)erfect  illustration.  Thci  stamens  on  the  one  hand  and  the 
ovary  and  pistil  on  the  other,  may  indeed  reside  in  one  blossom,  which  then  exists  in 
a  married  or  leprodnctive  state.  But  eijually  well,  the  stamens  or  male  organs  m.iy 
reside  iuone  plant,  and  theovary  and  i)isiil  or  female  organs  may  reside  in  another,  la 
that  case,  the  two  plants  are  reijuireil  to  make  one  structurally  complete  organization. 
Each  is  but  half  a  i>lant.  an  incomplete  individual  by  itself.  Tae  lite  princl|de  of 
each  must  be  united  to  that  of  the  otlu-r;  the  twain  must  l)e  indeed  one  llesh  before 
the  organization  is  either  structurally  or  functionally  complete. 

Now,  everywhere  throughout  nature,  to  the  male  and  female  ide  il,  certain  distinct 
powers  and  properties  belong.  The  lines  of  demarkai ion  are  not  ahvavs  clear,  not  al- 
ways straight  lines;  they  aie  frequently  wavering,  sliadovvy,  and  ditlicnlt  to  follow; 
yet  on  the  wlude,  wherever  physical  strength,  personal  aggressiveness,  the  iuiellectual 
scope  and  vigor  which  manage  vast  material  enterprises  are  emi)haMized.  there  tiie 
masculine  idt-al  is  present.  On  the  other  hand,  wherever  retineim  nt.  tenderness,  deli- 
cacy, sprightiiness.  spiritual  acumen,  and  force  are  to  the  fore,  there  the  leupiiine 
ideal  is  rei>resented,  and  th''se  terms  will  be  found  nearly  enough,  for  all  i)ractical 
purposes,  to  re]»re.sent  th.e  differing  endowments  of  actual  men  and  w  iiiieu.  Ditfci  ent 
})Owers  snggest  different  aciivities,  and  under  i he  division  of  labor  here  indicated  ihe 
C(mtrol  of  the  state,  leg  slation,  the  jmwer  ol  the  ballot  would  s»'em  ti»  Call  to  the 
share  of  man.  Nor  does  this  decision  carry  with  it  any  injustice,  any  r<»bberv  of  just 
or  natural  right  to  woman.  In  lier  hands  is  placed  a  mi>ral  and  spiritual  i»<»wer,  tar 
greater  than  the  power  of  the  ballo".  In  her  married  orreproductivest.ite,  the  form- 
ing and  shaping  of  human  souls  in  their  most  plastic  period  is  her  destiny.  Nor  do 
her  labors  or  her  responsibilities  end  with  infancy  or  childhood.    Throughout  his  eu- 


2 


WOMAN  SUFFRAGE. 


tire  course,  from  the  cradle  to  the  jrrave,  man  is  ever  under  the  moral  and  spiritual 
infliu'uce  and  control  of  woman.  With  tliis  power  ooes  a  tremendous  responsiltility 
for  its  true  management  and  use.  If  woman  sliail  ever  rise  to  the  fall  heij^ht  of  her 
power  and  ])rivile<^es  i"n  this  direction,  she  will  have  enough  of  the  world's  workuiion 
her  hiinds  without  ntteui]>tin<;-  h'gislatiou. 

It  may  be  ar<j;ued  that  the  possession  of  civil  power  confers  dignity,  and  is  of  itself 
are-enforcement  of  whatever  n.'it  nral  [>ower  an  individual  may  possess ;  but  the  dig- 
nity of  womanhood,  when  it  is  fully  undi'rstood  an<l  appreciated,  needs  no  such  re-en- 
forcement, nor  are  the  jieculiar  needs  of  woman  such  as  the  law  can  reach.  When- 
ever laws  are  needed  for  the  protection  of  her  legal  stat  us  and  rights,  there  has  been 
found  to  be  little  difticulty  in  obtaining  them  by  means  otl^the  votes  of  men;  but 
the  deeper  and  more  vital  needs  of  wouiun  and  of  society  are  those  which  are  out- 
side altogether  of  the  |)ale  of  the  law,  and  whicu  can  only  be  reached  by  the  moral 
forces  lodged  in  the  hands  of  woman  herself,  acting  in  an  enlarged  and  general 
capacity.  For  ins  auce,  whenever  a  man  or  woman  has  been  wronged  in  marriage, 
the  law  may  indeed  step  in  with  a  divorce  ;  but  does  that  divorce  give  back  to  either 
party  the  dream  of  love,  the  happy  home,  the  prattle  of  children,  and  the  sweet  out- 
look for  future  years  which  were  destroyed  by  that  wrong?  It  is  not  a  legal  i)ower 
w^hich  is  needed  in  this.case;  it  is  a  moral  power,  which  shall  i^revent  the  wrong,  or, 
if  committed,  shall  induce  penitence,  forgiveness,  a  i)uier  life,  and  the  healing  of  the 
■wound.  This  power  has  been  lodged  by  the  Creator  in  the  hands  of  woman  herself,  and 
if  she  has  not  been  rightly  trained  to  us«}  it  there  is  no  redress  for  her  at  the  hands  of 
the  law.  The  hiw  alone  can  never  conipel  men  to  respect  the  chastity  of  women. 
They  must  first  recognize  its  value  in  themselves,  and  by  their  own  courageous  and 
upright  living — by  living  up  to  the  high  level  of  their  duties  as  maidens,  wives,  and 
mothers — they  must  impress  men  with  the  beauty  and  sacredness  of  purity,  and  then 
whatever  laws  are  necessary  and  available  for  its  protection  will  be  easily  obtained, 
with  a  certainty,  also,  that  they  can  be  enforced,  because  the  moral  sentiments  of 
men  will  be  enlisted  in  their  support. 

Privileges  bring  responsibilities,  and  before  women  clamor  for  more  work  to  do,  it 
were  better  that  they  should  attend  more  thoughtfully  to  the  duties  wiiich  lie  all 
about  them,  in  the  home  and  social  circle.  Until  society  is  cleansed  of  the  moral 
foulness  which  infests  it,  which,  as  we  have  seen,  lies  beyond  the  reach  of  civil  law, 
Avomen  have  no  call  to  go  forth  into  wi<ler  fields,  claijuing  to  be  therein  the  rightful 
and  natural  purifiers.  Let  them  first  make  the  home  sweet  and  pure,  and  the  streams 
which  How  therefrom  will  sweeter^  and  purify  all  the  rest. 

As  between  the  power  of  the  ballot  and  this  moral  force  exerted  by  women  there  can- 
not be  an  instant's  doubt  as  to  the  choice.  Nor  is  it  very  plain  to  be  seen  how  wo- 
men can  yield  both.  It  is  a  quest  ion  of  having  your  cake  and  eating  it  too.  In  natu- 
ral refinement  and  elevation  of  character  the  ideal  woman  stands  a  step  above  the 
ideal  man.  If  she  descends  from  this  fortunate  posiiion  to  take  part  in  the  coarse 
scramble  for  material  power,  what  chance  will  she  have  as  against  man's  aggressive 
forces;  and  what  can  she  possibly  gain  that  she  cannot  win  more  directly,  more  ef- 
fectually, and  with  far  more  dignity  and  glory  to  herself  by  the  exercise  of  her  own 
womanly  prerogatives  ?  She  has,  under  Go<l,  the  formation  and  rearing  of  men  in  her 
own  hands.  If  they  do  not  turn  out  in  the  end  to  be  men  who  respect  woman,  who  will 
protect  and  defend  her  in  the  exercise  of  every  one  of  her  God-given  rights,  it  is  be- 
cause she  has  failed  in  her  duty  toward  them  ;  has  not  been  taught  to  compreh<*nd 
her  own  power  and  to  use  it  to  its  best  ends.  For  women  to  seek  to  control  men  by 
the  power  of  suffrage  is  like  David  essaying  the  armor  of  Saul.  What  woman  needs 
is  her  own  sheepskin  sling  and  her  few  smooth  pebbles  from  the  bed  of  the  brook,  and 
then  go  forth  in  the  name  of  the  Lord  God  of  Hosts,  and  a  victory  as  sure  and  de- 
cisive as  that  of  the  shepherd  of  Israel  awaits  her. 

Again,  in  Chapter  4,  entitled,  *'  The  i)Ower  of  the  home,''  the  author 
says : 

It  is  perhaps  of  minor  consequence  that  women  should  have  felt  themselv^es  eman- 
cipated from  buttons  and  bread-making  ;  but  that  they  should  have  learued  to  look 
in  the  least  degree  slightingly  upon  the  great  duties  of  women  as  lovers  of  husbands, 
as  lovers  of  children,  as  the  fountain  and  source  of  what  is  highest  and  purest  and 
holiest,  and  not  less  of  what  is  homely  and  comfortable  and  satisfying  in  the  home, 
is  a  serious  misfortune.  Women  can  hardly  be  said  to  have  lost,  perlia])S  what  they 
have  SO  rarely  in  any  age  generally  attained,  that  dignity  which  knows  how  to  com- 
mand, united  with  a  sweetness  which  seems  all  the  while  to  be  complying  ;  the  power, 
Bupplo  and  strong,  which  rescues  the  character  of  the  ideal  woman  fronj  the  charge  of 
weakness,  and  at  the  same  time  exhibits  its  utmost  of  grace  and  fascination.  But  that 
of  late  years  the  gilt  has  not  been  cultivated,  has  not,  in  fact,  thrown  out  such  natural 
off-shoots  as  gave  grace  and  glory  to  some  earlier  bocial  epochs,  must  he  evident,  it 
would  seem,  to  any  thoughtful  observer. 

If,  instead  ofstriving  to  grasp  more  material  power,  women  would  pursue  those  studies 


WOMAN  SUl^FRAGE. 


3 


and  iiivosti<?ation8  wliich  tend  to  mnko  tlioin  fiuuiliar  with  n-liat  soieneo  tear'lios  con- 
cern in  the  iiitliieiiee  ot' t  he  mother  and  the  homo  ii  poti  I  he  ehihl,  of  how  compkitely  t  he 
Creator  in  <;'iviii<^  thei  <»ene;si8  of  tlie  human  race  into  lh(^  hands  of  woman,  has  mado 
her  notonl.N  ca])al»leof,  Imt  responsible  for,  npon  th(M-ej;-en«'raf  ion  of  the  world;  if  they 
wonhl  n  lh'cr  that  natnre  by  makin<r  man  tht)  bon(i-sh-i ve  of  his  passions,  haspnt  the 
lever  in  the  lumds  of  woman  by  which  she  may  control  him,  and  if  they  wonhl  h  am 
to  use  these  powers  not  as  bad  women  <h),  for  viloand  svllishends,  l)nt  as  th(^  mothers 
of  tlm  race  on<j,ht,  for  pure  an<l  holy,  and  redempti v»'  purposes,  then  Avonld  the  sphere 
of  women  be  enlai'*2;ed  to  somii  purpose  ;  t  he  at  mospbere  of  thi^  home  would  Ix;  pnrilied 
and  vitalized,  and  the  work  of  redeemin<^  man  fr*)m  lii-»  vices  would  be  hopefully  l)e;;un. 

From  Chapter  1  we  make  the  folio  win  extract: 

Is  this  em  incipation  of  woman,  if  that  is  the  i)roi)er  phrase  for  it,  a  final  end,  or 
only  the  nieans  to  an  end  ?  Are  w»)men  to  be  as  the  outcome  of  it  emancipated 
froni  their  workl-old  "  sjjliere "  of  marriage  and  motherhood  and  control  of  the 
moral  and  spiritual  destinies  of  the  race,  or  are  th(!y  to  Ix^  emancipated,  in  onha*  to 
the  i)roper  fullilhnent  of  these  functions  ?  It  wo  dd  seem  that  most  of  the  advanced 
•women  of  thi;  day  would  answer  the  tirst  of  these  (luestions  aflirnniti vely.  Women, 
1  think  it.  has  been  authoritatively  ^stated,  are  to  l>e  emancipated  in  order  that  they 
may  become  fully  developed  human  bein<;s,  something  broader  and  stronger,  some- 
thing higher  and  finer,  tnore  delicate,  more  aesthetic,  u.ore  generally  raretied  and 
sublimated  than  tiie  ()ld-fashi«)ned  type  of  wouniidiood,  the  wife  and  mother.  And 
tiie  lesult  of  the  woman  movement  seems  more  or  less  in  a  line  thus  far  with  this 
theoretic  aim.  Of  advanccvl  women,  a  less  proportion  are  inclined  to  marry  than  of 
the  old-fashioned  tyi)e ;  of  these  wlio  do  nnirry,  a  great  ])roportion  are  resiU  ss  in 
marriage  bomis  or  seek  release  from  them,  while  of  those  who  do  remain  in  married 
life,  many  bear  no  children,  and  few  indeed  Itecome  mothers  of  large  families.  The 
woman's  vitality  is  concentrated  in  the  l>rain,  and  friu  tilies  more  in  intellectual  than 
p.hysi'  al  forms.  Now  women  who  do  not  marry  are  one  of  two  things,  either  they  be- 
long to  a  class  which  we  shrink  from  naming,  o  they  become  old  nmids.  An  old  maid 
may  be  in  herself  a  very  useful  and  commendable  person,  a  valuable  member  of  so- 
ciety— many  are  all  this — bnt  she  has  still  this  sad  (Irawl)ack,  she  cannot  perpetuate 
herself;  and  since  all  history  and  ol>servation  go  to  prove  that  the  great  final  eml  of 
creation,  whatever  it  may  be,  can  only  t  e  achieved  throngh  the  i)eri)etnity  and  in- 
creasing ]>rogress  of  the  race,  it  follows  that  unmarried  woman  isnotthe  most  neces- 
sary, the  imlispensable  type  of  woiuan.  If  there  were  no  other  class  of  females  left 
upon  the  earth  bnt  the  women  who  do  not  bear  children,  then  the  world  would  be  a 
failure,  creation  would  lie  non])lussed. 

If,  then,  the  movement  for  the  emancipation  of  woman  has  for  its  final  end  the 
making  of  never  so  fine  a  (i|nality,  never  so  sublimated  a  sort  of  non-child-bearing 
women,  it  is  an  ahsur<lity  upon  the  face  of  it. 

From  the  standpoint  of  the  Chimney  Corner,  i  appears  that  too  many  even  of  the 
most  gilted  and  liberal  mindt'd  of  the  leaders  in  the  woman's  rights  movement  have 
nor  yet  iliscovered  this  flaw  in  their  logic.  Tbey  seek  to  individualize  women,  not 
seeing  ap[)arently  that  individualized  women,  old  maids,  and  indi vidualizeti  men, 
old  bachelors,  though  they  may  be  useful  in  certain  minor  ways,  are,  after  all,  to 
speak  with  the  relentnessiiess  of  scieni;e,  fragmentary  and  abortive,  so  far  as  the  great 
scheme  of  the  uinverse  is  conrerned,  and  often  become  in  addition  seriously  detri- 
menral  to  the  right  progress  of  society.  The  man  and  woman  united  in  marriage  form 
the  unit  of  the  lacti ;  they  alone  rightly  wield  theself-])erp(!tuating  power  upon  which 
all  human  ]irogress  depends  ;  without  which  the  race  itself  must  perish,  the  universe 
become  null. 

Rea<  hing  this  point  of  the  argument,  it  becomes  evident  that  while  the  develop- 
ment of  the  individual  man  or  indivulnal  woman  is  no  doubt  of  great  importance, 
since,  as  Margaret  VulhT  has  justly  said,  "  There  must  be  uiuts  before  there  can 
be  union,"  it  is  chiefly  so  because  of  th<'ir  ndation  to  each  other.  TUeir  chaiactt'rs 
should  he  (h;velopt;d  with  a  view  to  their  future  union  with  each  other,  and  not  to  bo 
inde})cndent  of  it.  \Vhen  the  leaders  of  the  woman's  movement  fully  realize  this,  and 
shape  tln  ir  course  accordingly,  they  will  have  made  a  great  advance,  both  in  the 
value  of  tln'ir  work  and  in  its  claim  upon  public  sympathy .  Moreover,  they  will  have 
reached  a  ]>oint  from  which  it  will  be  possible,  for  them  to  investigate,  reform  and 
idealize  the  relations  existing  between  men  )»n(l  wome?.,  as  it  is  now  impossii)Ie  for 
them  to  do,  and  to  meet  in  a  practical  manner  the  question  whitdi  more  than  all  others 
ai)])alls  the  philanthropist  and  staggers  the  practical  reft)rmer,  namely,  the  preven- 
tion and  cure  of  licentinusness. 

We  make  a  few  additional  (flotations  from  the  a])i)on(lix,  entitled, 
^'Tbe  relation  of  woman  to  the  state;  praciieal  sng:gvstions." 

A  publication  of  the  foregoing  letters  in  the  Chicago  Inter-Ocean  brought  out  so 
many  protests  from  the  "women  suflVagists  that  in  submitting  the  letters  to  iho  public 


4 


WOMAN  SUFFRAGE. 


the  wrifer  feels  constrainefl  to  add  a  few  words  coiiceruing  what  appears  to  her  to  be 
the  true  ]>lace  of  woman  in  the  state. 

To  say  lliat  llie  ]»ower  of  woman  is  essentially  a  moral  one  does  not  necessarily  im- 
ply that  all  women  are  more  moral  than  all  men,  nor  even  that  in  any  given  commu- 
nity a  majority  of  women,  if  allosved  to  vote,  would  be  found  upon  the  side  of  nu-as- 
nres  proi»osed  in  the  interest  of  abstract  nuual  excellence.  In  mont  communities, 
notably  in  large  cities,  where ^prostitntes  abound,  and  where  thieves  and  gamblers  and 
paloon  kt  epers,  and  the  vicious  classes  generally  have  their  multitude  of  female  ad- 
herents, and  where,  on  the  other  hand,  frivolity  and.the  fashionable  forms  of  vice  absorb 
so  jnany  women,  it  may  well  be  doubted  if  upon  any  great  moral  question  the  ma- 
jority of  women  wonhl  be  found  on  the  side  of  even  practicaHuorality. 

0\\f^  strong  ass<'rtion — it  can  Iiardly  be  called  an  argument — of  the  women  sutfra- 
gists  is,  tluit  if  the  wives  and  mothers  of  any  conmiunity  were  allowed  to  vote  they 
would  close  saloons,  brothels,  and  gambling  houses.  But  setting  aside  the  question 
vf  Avliether  the  ab.solute  closing  of  these  ])laces  would  be,  on  the  whole,  a  irain  to  so- 
ciety in  its  present  condition  of  imiturity  ;  whether  the  best  that  can  be  done  is  not 
to  heal  the  open  ulcer,  which  indicates  and  at  the  same  time  gives  relief  to  the  in- 
famous disease  within,  but  rather  so  to  restrain  and  circumscribe  it  that  it  may  not 
8X)read  the  plague  by  its  foul  inoculation.  Setting  t  his  (piestion  wholly  aside,  it  is  by 
no  means  clear  to  the  minds  of  some  who  liave  given  the  matter  deep  and  prayerful 
consideration,  that  the  niajoi  ity  of  all  tin;  women  of  any  community  in  which  vice  is 
openly  ram])ant  would  vote  for  such  suppression.  The  good  wives  and  mothers,  t  he  pure 
and  true  women  generally,  of  any  connnunity  are,  indeed,  invested  with  amoral  torce, 
■which,  if  intelligently  wielded,  is  well  nigh  supreme;  butitis  not  a  force  of  numbers, 
like  that  which  ])revails  in  the  political  world.  Asa  voter,  a  good  woman  hasnonu)re 
power  in  the  state  than  a  bad  one.  At  the  p<dls  the  woman  of  gifts,  cultuie,  of  em- 
inent social  posiilion,  puts  herself  upon  an  absolute  equality  with  the  vilest  drab  ia 
the  streets.  This  fact,  asexpressed  in  manhood  sutiVage— the  abscdute  {)olitical equality 
of  all  male  voters — already  constitut<'8  in  the  eyesof  many  wise  statesmen  an  imminent 
and  deadly  peril  to  the  Republic  ;  a  p^ril  which  would  not  be  in  any  wise  lessened, 
but  greatly  complicated  by  the  admission  of  all  women  to  the  privilege  of  the  ballot. 
In  England,  ^^hele  suffiago  is  bestowed  by  classes,  the  torce  of  this  objection  is 
greatly  diminished.  Much  as  some  female  leaders  of  opinion  in  that  country  may  de- 
sire the  parliamentary  vote  lor  themselves,  I  greatly  doubt  if  they  would  rejoice  to 
see  it  bestowed  upon  the  women  of  St.  Giles  and  Billingsgate. 

Ought  then  this  moral  power,  which  resides  in  the  good  and  true  women  of  any 
community,  to  beexcluded  fiom  influence  upon  the  state?  By  no  means.  Probably 
few  women  have  deeper,  more  ])ositive,  or  more  earnest  convictions  upon  this  subject 
than  the  writer  of  these  lines.  But  let  us  examine  briefly  the  foundations  upon  which 
the  state  rests. 

One  of  the  wisest  and  purest  of  European  republicans,  Joseph  Mazzini,  is  recorded 
as  believing  that  not  right,  but  duty,  is  the  watchword  of  human  j)rogress.  Not  au 
nnconditional  liberty  is  the  foundation  of  a  true  state,  but  the  restrained  and  orderly 
exercise  of  proper  individual  prerogatives. 

Long  before  you  can  predicate  j)olitical  duties  for  woman,  you  mnst  recognize  her 
duty  as  wife  and  mother;  as  the  queen  regnant  of  thehome,  as  the  fountain  of  order, 
jnsiice,  viitue,  and  charity,  the  giver  of  life,  and  the  former  of  character  for  future 
generations.  Heaven's  supreme  excellerces  center  around  and  find  their  best  earthly 
expression  in  the  ideal  woman  and  her  work. 

To  this  hi^h  office,  the  duty  of  man  is  subordinate.  He  is  to  furnisi\  the  mate- 
rial supplies  by  means  of  which  the  great  work  of  re-cr  ation  may  be  carried  on.  Ifc 
is  his  duty  to  sn])port  the  family  by  his  labor,  to  give  it  the  strength  of  his  counsels, 
and  the  protection  of  his  val()r.  Few  women  who  are  good,  and  true,  and  faithful 
iiu)thers,  would  not  resent  the  idea  that  it  was  their  duty,  also,  to  furnish  the  mate- 
rial supi)lie8  which  nourish  the  outward  form  or  body  of  the  home. 

"No,"  they  would  say,  and  say  rightly;  "We  ])eril  our  lives  for  our  children,  we 
give  our  da  vs  and  nights  to  care  and  anxiety,  to  burdens  of  pain  and  perph^xity, 
which  men  know  nothing  of.  It  is  their  duty  to  minister  to  the  material  necessities  of 
ourselves  and  our  children,  without  toiler  trouble  on  our  part." 

Let  us  carry  a  sitnilar  division  of  labor  into  the  state.  Does  not  the  voice  of  the 
true  woman  respond,  "We  furnish  citizens,  bone  of  our  bone,  and  flesh  of  our  flesh; 
we  train  them  uj)  to  manhood  in  all  manly,  noble  virtues  ;  we  givetheni  our  patience, 
our  faith,  our  watchfulness,  our  prayers,  and  it  is  little  to  ask  in  return  that  tlie 
state,  which  is  managed  by  them,  sliall  be  just  and  impartial,  nay,  generous  and 
munificent,  to  us,  who  trust  our  all  in  their  hands."  As  a  matter  of  fact,  women  have 
too  seldom  put  forth  such  apjieals  as  t>is,  but  whenever  and  wherever  they  have  done 
so,  at  least  in  this  American  Republic,  they  have  always  Ibund  a  respectful  hearing 
and  a  generous  response  ;  and  the  simple  and  sole  reason  why  women  are  not  endowed 
Avith  suflrage  to-day  is,  that  the  majority  of  the  wives  and  mothers,  and  good  vvomen 
generally,  of  this  laud,  have  never  asked  for  nor  desired  it. 


WOMAN  SUFFRAGE. 


5 


Civil  law  is  the  j^rowtli  of  the  agos,  andjikcs  nil  other  imiiipniorial  institutions,  it 
cherishes  many  iinpei  lections  ;  bnt  these  are  l>ein<x  removed  as  rapidly,  perhaps,  ;is  is 
consistent  with  trne  ])foi:r<  ss.  That  there  still  rcunain  laws  upon  I h(^  stat ntti  hooks 
Avhich  ;iro  reliesof  biuharism,  and  hoar  h.irdly  npon  woman,  is  true  enough;  hut  let 
the  women  of  ;iny  connnnnity  nnite  to  deline  these  wrongs  ami  sn^jL^est  tiie  re«lress, 
and  thern  will  be  no  diiticnlty  in  obtaining  it,  not  in  spite  of  nien,  bnt  by  nutans  of 
them.  If  a  wonnni  wants  a  new  house  s'.ie  does  not  <;o  at  W(\rk  with  a  pick  and  s])ado 
and  tiowel  to  build  ir  herself;  she  sim])ly  sets  the  men  al>out  it,  and  if  she  is  worthy 
of  a  home  at  all,  she  has  her  parlur  .ind  kitchen  and  closets  just  where  she  wants 
them,  too.  If  she  desires  civil  or  political  improvements,  let  her  <ifo  about  the  work 
in  t he  s.-inn^  I'.ishion. 

It  is  tnis  united  action,  the  i  s])iration  coming  from  women,  the  execution  from  men, 
and  the  two  forces  workinj^  harnM)niously  and  lovingly  to<;ether,  not  pulling  awk- 
wardly and  an<;rily  apart,  that  is  destined  to  save  the  state  and  save  the  worhl. 

The  above  quotations,  froin  tbe  valnablo  Uttle  book  ali^eady  mentioned 
by  oar  j^itted  auliioress,  are  so  ai)i)ropi  iate,  vso  well  and  so  forceibly  ex- 
])ressed,  that  we  clieei  lnlly,  as  already  stated,  substitute  them  in  pbico 
of  any  })Toduction  of  our  own,  and  resi)eetfully  commend  them  to  tlie 
Senate  and  to  the  country  as  worthy  of  careful  consideration  and  re- 
flection. 

We  also  append  hereto  the  minority  report  submitted  by  the  under- 
signed in  the  Forty-eighth  Congress. 

JOSEPH  E.  BROWN. 
F.  M.  COOKKELL. 


rSenate  Report  No.  399,  Part  2,  Forty-eighth  Congro.ss,  first  ses.sion.j 

The  nvderfigvcd  mivoritij  of  the  CommWee  of  the.  Senate  on  JVontan  Snffraqe,  to  u-hom  was 
ref  rred  S.  Ii'ts.  19,  propoHiuq  an  amendment  1o  the  Constitution  of  the  United  Siaten, 
granting  the  ri(jhi  to  vote  to  the  women  of  the  United  States,  beg  leave  to  submit  the  fol- 
lowing report : 

The  nndersi<;ned  believe  that  the  Creator  intended  that  the  sphere  of  the  males  and 
fenujles  of  our  race  should  be  ditfereut,  and  that  their  duties  and  oblijiations,  while 
they  ditfer  nniterially,  are  ecinally  imiiortant  and  ecinally  honoralde,  and  that  each 
Bex  is  equally  well  qualilied  by  natural  endowments  for  the  (lischar<jfe  of  the  impor- 
tant duties  which  pertain  to  each,  and  that  each  sex  is  equally  competent  to  dis- 
cbarjie  those  duties. 

We  find  an  abundance  of  evidence  both  in  the  works  of  nature  and  in  the  Divine 
revelation  to  establish  the  fact  that  trie  family  y)roperly  re<rulated  is  the  fonndation 
and  pillar  of  society,  and  is  the  most  important  of  any  other  human  institution. 

In  the  Divine  economy  it  is  provided  that  the  man  shall  i)e  th^  head  of  the  family, 
and  shall  take  upon  himself  the  solemn  obh<;atiou  of  prov  idiu<5  for  auil  protectin;^  the 
fannly. 

Man,  by  reason  of  his  physical  stren<rth,  and  his  other  endowments  and  faculties, 
is  qnalitied  for  the  dischar<xe  of  those  duties  that  require  strt'ni;th  and  ability  toc  un- 
hat  with  the  sterner  re;i1ities  and  difficulties  of  life.  The  <litferent  classes  of  outdoor 
labor,  which  require  i)hysical  strength  and  endurance,  are  by  nature  assi<riied  to  man, 
the  head  of  the  family,  ns  part  of  his  task.  He  discharges  such  labors  as  recpiire 
greater  ])hysical  endurance  ami  strength  than  the  female  sex  are  nsinilly  found  to  pos- 
sess. It  is  not  only  his  duty  to  provide  for  and  ])rot<'et  the  family,  hut  as  a  memlxT 
of  the  comnnmity  it  is  also  his  duty  to  discharge  the  Inborious  and  responsibhiobliixa- 
tions  which  the  family  owe  to  the  State,  and  which  (d)ligaiion  must  be  discharged  by 
the  head  of  the  family,  until  the  nnile  mem  hers  of  the  fmiily  have  grown  np  to  man- 
hood and  are  at)le  to  aid  in  the  discharge  of  those  obligations,  wh<*n  it  becomes  their 
duty  in  their  turn  to  take  charge  of  and  rear  each  a  family,  for  which  he  is  responsi- 
l)le. 

Among  other  duties  which  the  liead  of  the  Aimily  owes  to  the  state  is  military  duty 
in  time  of  war,  which  he,  when  able-bodie<l,  is  able  to  discharge,  and  which  the  fe- 
nnile  members  of  the  family  are  unable  to  dis(diarge. 

He  is  silso  under  obligaiion  to  discharge  jury  duty,  and  by  himself  or  his  represent- 
ative to  discharge  his  partof  the  labor  necessary  to  construct  ami  kt'ej)  in  proper  order 
roa<ls,  bridges,  streets,  and  all  grades  of  ])ublic  highways.  And  in  this  progressive 
age  upon  the  male  sex  is  devolved  the  duty  of  constrncting  our  railroads,  and  the 


6 


WOMAN  SUFFRAGE. 


engines  and  other  rolling-stock  with  which  they  are  operated,  of  bnilding,  equipping, 
and  launching  shipping  and  other  water  crafts  of  every  character  necessary  for  tho 
tran8portati6n  of  passengers  and  freight  upon  our  rivers,  our  lakes,  and  upon  the 
high  seas. 

The  labor  in  our  fields,  sowing,  cultivating,  and  reaping  crops  must  be  discharged 
mainly  by  the  male  sex,  as  the  female  sex,  for  want  of  physical  strength,  are  gener- 
ally unable  to  discharge  these  duties. 

As  it  is  the  duty  of  the  male  sex  to  perform  the  obligations  to  the  state,  to  society, 
and  to  the  family,  already  mentioned,  with  numerous  others  that  might  be  enumer- 
ated, it  is  also  their  duty  to  aid  in  the  government  of  the  state,  which  is  simply  a 
great  aggregation  of  families.  Society  cannot  be  preserved  nor  can  the  peoj)le  be 
prosperous  without  good  government.  The  Governmeut  of  our  country  is  a  govern- 
ment of  the  people,  and  it  becomes  necessary  that  t  hat  class  of  people  upon  whom  the 
resptinsibility  rests  should  assemble  together  and  cousider  and  discuss  thegreat  qnes- 
tious  of  governmental  policy  which  from  time  to  time  are  presented  for  their  decision. 
This  often  recjuires  the  assembling  of  caucuses  iu  the  night-tiuie  as  well  as  public  as- 
semblages in  the  day-time.  It  is  a  laborious  task  for  which  the  male  sex  is  intinitely 
better  fitted  than  the  female  sex,  and  after  proper  consideration  and  discussion  of  the 
measures  that  may  divide  the  country  from  time  to  time,  the  duty  devolves  upon  those 
who  are  responsible  for  the  Government,  at  times  and  places  to  be  fixed  by  law,  to  meet 
and  by  the  ballot  to  decide  the  great  questions  of  government  upon  which  the  prosperity 
of  the  country  depends.  These  aresomeof  theactiveand sternerdutiesof  life  to  which 
the  male  sex  is  by  nature  better  fitted  than  the  female  sex.  If  in  carrying  out  the  policy 
of  the  state  on  great  measures  adjudged  vital,  such  policy  should  lead  to  war,  either 
foreign  or  domestic,  it  would  seem  to  follow  very  naturally  that  those  who  have  been 
responsible  for  the  management  of  the  state  should  be  the  parties  to  take  the  hazards 
and  hardships  o.f  the  struggle. 

Here,  again,  man  is  fitted  by  nature  for  the  discharge  of  the  duty — woman  is  unfit 
for  it.  So  much  for  some  of  the<luties  imposed  upon  the  male  sex,  for  the  discharge  of 
which  the  Creator  has  endowed  them  with  proper  strength  and  faculties. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  Creator  has  assigned  to  woman  very  laborious  and  responsi- 
ble duties,  by  no  m^ans  less  important  than  those  imposed  upon  the  male  sex,  though 
entirely  difterent  in  their  character.  In  the  family  she  is  a  queen.  She  alone  is  fitted 
for  the  discharge  of  the;  sacied  trust  of  wife  and  the  endearing  relation  of  mother. 
While  the  man  is  contending  with  the  sterner  duties  of  life,  the  whole  time  of  the 
noble,  atfectionate,  and  true  woman  is  required  in  the  discharge  of  the  delicate  and 
difficult  duties  assigned  her  in  the  family  circle,  in  her  church  relations,  and  in  the 
society  where  her  lot  is  cast.  When  the  husband  returns  home  weary  and  worn  in 
the  discharge  of  the  difficult  and  laborious  task  assigned  him,  he  finds  in  the  good 
wife  solace  and  consolation  which  is  nowhere  else  afforded.  If  he  is  despondent  and 
distressed,  she  ch^^ers  his  heart  with  words  of  kindness;  if  he  is  sick  or  languishing, 
she  soothes,  comforts,  and  administers  to  him  as  no  one  but  an  afiVctionate  wife  can 
do.  If  his  bunlens  are  onerous,  she  divides  their  weight  by  the  exercise  of  her  love 
and  her  sympathy. 

But  a  still  more  important  duty  devolves  upon  the  mother.  After  having  brought 
into  existence  the  offspring  of  the  nuptial  union,  the  children  are  dependent  upon  the 
mother  as  they  are  not  upon  any  other  human  being.  The  trust  is  a  most  sacred, 
most  responsible,  and  most  important  one.  To  watch  over  them  in  their  infancy,  and, 
as  the  mind  begins  to  expand,  to  train,  direct,  and  educate  it  into  the  paths  of  virtue 
and  usefulness,  is  the  high  trust  assigned  to  the  mother.  She  trains  the  twig  as  the 
tree  shotild  be  inclined.  She  molds  the  character.  She  educates  the  heart  as  w^ell  as 
the  intellect,  and  she  prei)ares  the  future  man,  now  the  boy,  for  honor  or  dishonor. 
Upon  the  manner  in  which  she  discharges  her  duty  depends  the  fact  whether  he  shall 
iu  future  be  a  useful  citizen  or  a  burden  to  society.  She  inculcates  lessons  of  patriot- 
ism, manliness,  religion,  and  virtue,  fitting  the  man  by  reason  of  his  training  to  bean 
ornament  to  society,  or  dooming  him  by  her  neglect  to  a  life  of  dishonor  and  shame. 
Society  acts  unwisely  when  it  imposes  upon  her  the  duties  that  by  common  consent 
have  always  been  assigned  to  the  sterner  and  stronger  sex,  and  the  discharge  of  which 
causes  her  to  neglect  those  sacred  and  all-important  duties  to  her  children,  and  to  the 
society  of  which  they  are  members. 

In  the  church,  by  her  piety,  Iter  charity,  and  her  Christian  purity  she  not  only  aids 
society  by  a  proper  training  of  her  own  children,  but  the  children  of  others,  whom 
she  encourages  to  come  to  the  sacred  altar,  are  taught  to  walk  in  the  paths  of  recti- 
tude, honor,  and  religion.  In  the  Sunday-school  room  the  good  woman  is  a  princess, 
and  she  exerts  an  infinence  which  ]uirities  and  ennobles  society,  training  the  young 
in  the  truths  of  religion,  making  the  Sunday-school  the  nursery  of  the  chutcli  and 
elevating  society  to  tlie  higher  planes  of  pure  religion,  virtue,  and  patriotism. 

In  the  sick  room  and  among  the  humble,  the  poor,  and  the  suftering,  the  good 
woman,  like  an  angel  ot  light,  cheers  the  hearts  and  revives  the  hopes  of  the  poor,  the 
suffering,  and  the  despondent. 


WOMAN  SUFFRAGE. 


7 


It  \v()ul<l  be  a  vain  attoni[)t  to  undertake  to  onDinerate  the  retiiiiui;-,  ('ii(U'ariii<;,  and 
ennobliui;  inlluences  exercised  by  the  true  Avr»nian  in  lier  reflations  to  tlie  family  anil 
to  society  when  she  occn|)ies  the  sphtre  assijiiied  her  by  the  laws  of  nature  and  the 
Divine  inspiration,  whicli  are  our  surest  "uide  ibr  the  present  and  the  future  life. 
But  howcau  woman  beexpected  to  meet  these  heavy  responsibilities  and  to  discharj^e 
these  delicate  an<l  most  important  duti«'s  of  wife,  Christian,  teacher,  minister  of  mercy, 
friend  of  the  sutferin*;,  and  consoler  of  the  despondent  and  the  needy,  if  we  impose 
upon  her  the  j^rosser,  rougher,  and  harsherduties  which  nature  has  assi<;ned  to  the  male 
sex  ? 

If  the  wife  and  tlie  mother  is  required  to  leave  the  sacred  ])recincts  of  lK)me,  and 
to  attempt  to  do  military  duty  when  the  state  is  in  i)eril,  or  if  she  is  lo  be  re(|uired 
to  leave  her  home  from  day  to  ilay  in  attendance  njiou  the  court  as  a  juror,  and  to  be 
shut  up  in  the  jury-room  from  ni<;ht  to  ninht,  with  men  who  are  strau«;ers,  while  a 
question  of  life  orpro))t  rty  is  beiu<»;  considered,  if  she  is  to  attend  political  meetiujrs, 
take  i^art  in  political  discussions,  and  min<;le  wilh  the  male  sex  at  political  <;ather- 
in^s,  if  she  is  to  become  an  active;  ])olitician,  if  she  is  to  atteml  ])olitical  caucuses  at 
late  hours  of  the  ni<iht,  if  she  is  to  take  part  in  all  the  unsavory  work  that  may  be 
deemed  necessary  for  the  triumph  of  her  party,  and  if  on  election  day  she  is  to  leave 
her  home  and  go  upon  the,  streets  electioneering  for  votes  for  the  candidates  who  re- 
ceive her  support,  and  mingling  among  the  crowds  of  men  who  gather  around  the 
polls,  she  is  to  press  her  way  through  them  to  the  ballot-box  and  deposit  her  sutirage, 
if  she  is  to  take  ])art  in  the  corporate  struggles  of  the  city  or  town  in  which  she  re- 
sides, attend  to  the  duties  of  his  honor  the  mayor,  of  council tuau,  or  of  policeman, 
to  say  nothing  of  the  many  other  like  obligations  which  are  disagreeable  even  to  ther 
male  sex,  how  is  she,  with  all  the^>e  heavy  duties  of  citizen,  i)()litician,  and  otlice- 
holder  resting  upon  her  shoulders,  to  attend  to  the  niore  sacred,  delicate,  and  relining 
trust  to  which  we  have  already  referred,  and  for  which  she  is  peculiarly  titted  by 
nature  ?  If  she  is  to  discharge  the  duties  last  mentioned,  how  is  she,  in  connection 
■with  them;  to  discharge  the  more  retiuing,  elevating,  and  ennobling  duties  of  wife, 
m-otlier,  Christian,  and  friend,  which  are  found  in  the  sphere  were  nature  has  placed 
berf 

Who  is  to  care  for  and  traiu  the  children  while  she  is  absent  in  the  discharge  of 
these  masculine  duties  ? 

If  It  were  proper  to  reverse  the  order  of  nature  and  assign  woman  to  the  sterner 
duties  devolved  upon  the  n)ale  sex  and  to  attempt  to  assign  man  to  the  more  refining, 
delicate,  and  ennobling  duties  of  the  woman,  man  would  be  found  entirely  incompe- 
tent to  the  discharge  of  the  obligations  which  nature  has  devolved  upon  the  gentler 
sex,  and  society  must  be  greatly  injured  by  the  attempted  change.  But  if  we  are 
tohl  that  the  object  of  tliis  mo\  ement  is  not  to  reverse  this  order  of  nature,  but  only 
to  devolve  upon  the  gentler  sex  a  portion  of  the  more  rigorous  duties  imposed  by  na- 
ture upon  tlie  stronger  sex.  we  reply  that  society  must  be  injured,  as  t}ie  wouian 
would  not  Be  able  to  discharge  thost;  duties  so  well,  by  reason  of  her  waat  of  physi- 
cal strength,  as  the  male,  upon  whom  they  are  devolved,  and  to  the  extent  that  the 
duties  are  to  be  divided  the  male  would  be  iutinitely  less  competent  to  discharge  the 
delicate  and  sacred  trusts  Avhich  nature  has  assigned  to  the  female. 

But  it  has  been  said  that  the  present  law  is  unjust  to  woman  ;  that  she  is  often  re- 
quired to  pay  taxes  on  proi)erty  she  holds  without  being  permitted  to  take  part  in 
framing  or  administering  the  laws  by  which  her  property  is  governed,  and  that  she 
is  taxed  without  representation.    That  is  a  great  mistake. 

It  may  be  very  doubtful  whether  the  male  or  the  female  sex,  in  the  present  state  of 
things,  has  more  influence  in  the  administration  of  the  affairs  of  the  Government,  and 
the  enactment  of  the  laws  by  which  we  are  governed. 

While  the  woman  does  not  discharge  military  duty,  nor  does  she  attend  courts  and 
serve  on  juries,  nor  does  she  labor  upon  the  pul)lic  streets,  bridges,  or  highways,  nor 
does  she  engage  actively  and  publicly  in  the  discussion  of  political  affairs,  nor  does 
she  enter  the  cro\Aded  precincts  of  the  ballot-box  to  deposit  her  suffrage,  still  tiie  in- 
telligent, cultivated,  noble  woman  is  a  oower  behind  the  throne.  All  heriutluence  is 
in  favor  of  morality,  justice,  and  fair  dealing;  all  her  efforts  and  her  counsel  are  in 
favor  of  good  government,  wise  and  wholesome  regulations,  and  a  faithful  admiuis- 
tration  of  the  laws.  Such  a  woman,  by  her  gtuitleness,  kindness,  and  Christian  bear- 
ing, impresses  her  views  and  her  counsels  upon  her  father,  herhuslnind,  her  brothers, 
her  sons,  and  her  other  male  friends,  who  imi)erceptibly  yield  to  her  iiillneiice  many 
times,  without  even  being  conscious  of  it.  She  rules  not  with  a  rod  of  iron,  but  with 
the  queenly  scepter ;  she  binds  not  with  hooks  of  ste.l,  but  with  silken  cords;  she 
governs  not  by  physical  efforts,  but  by  moral  suasion  and  feminine  purity  and  deli- 
cacy.   Her  dominion  is  one  of  love,  not  of  arbitrary  power. 

We  are  satisfied,  therefore,  that  the  pure,  cultivated,  and  ])ious  ladies  of  this  coun- 
try now  exercise  a  very  powerful  but  quiet,  imperceptible  iutiuence  in  popular  affairs, 
much  greater  than  they  will  ever  again  exercise  if  female  suffrage  should  be  enacted 


8 


WOMAN  SUFFRAGE. 


and  they  sbonld  be  compelled  actively  to  take  part  in  the  affairs  of  state  and  the  cor- 
ruptions of  [larty  ]><>litics. 

It  would  lye  a  gratification,  and  we  are  always  ^jlad  to  see  the  hidies  gratified,  to 
many  who  have  espoused  the  canst?  of  woman  sntfiagc  if  thev  could  take  active  part 
in  political  afltairs,  and  go  to  the  ])olls  and  cast  tlieir  votes  alongside  the  male  sex; 
hut  while  this  would  be  a  gratiticat ion  to  a  large  number  of  very  wor  thy  and  excellent 
ladies,  Avho  take  a  difierent  view  of  the  question  from  that  w  hich  we  entertsiin,  we 
feel  that  it  would  be  a  great  cruelty  to  a  much  larger  number  of  the  culti vated,  re- 
tined,  delicate,  and  lovely  women  of  this  country  who  seek  no  such  distinction,  who 
would  enjoy  no  such  ])rivilege,  who  would  with  woman-like  <lelicacy  shrink  from  the 
discharge  of  any  such  obligation,  and  w  ho  would  sincerel.\'-''regret  that  what  they 
consider  the  folly  of  the  state  had  im]»used  upon  them  any  such  unpleasant  duties. 

But  should  female  suffrage  be  once  established  it  would  become  an  imperative  ne- 
cessity that  the  very  large  class,  indeed  much  the  largest  class,  of  the  women  of  this 
country,  of  the  character  last  described,  should  yiehl,  contrary  to  their  inclinations 
and  their  wishes,  to  the  necessity  which  would  .compel  them  to  engage  in  political 
strife.  We  apprehend  no  one  who  lias  properly  considered  this  question  will  doubt, 
if  female  suffrage  should  be  establish(;d,  that  the  more  ignorant  and  less  refined  })or- 
tions  of  the  female  i)oi)ulation  of  this  conntrv,  to  say  nothing  of  the  basi-r  class  of 
females,  laying  aside  female  delica<  y,  and  disregarding  the  sacred  duties  devolving 
upon  them  to  which  we  have  alreacly  reierred,  would  rush  to  the  polls  and  take  pleas- 
ure in  the  crowded  association  which  the  situation  would  compel  of  the  two  sexes  in 
political  meetings  and  at  the  ballot-box. 

If  all  the  baser  and  all  the  more  ignorant  portion  of  the  female  sex  crowd  to  the 
polls  and  deposit  their  sufirage,  this  compels  the  very  large  class  of  intelligent,  vir- 
tuous, and  refined  females,  including  the  wives  and  niothers  who  have  much  more 
important  duties  to  perform,  to  leave  their  sacred  labors  at  home,  relinquishing  for  a 
time  the  God-giving  impoitant  tiust  which  has  been  placed  in  their  hands,  to  go  con- 
trary to  their  wishes  to  the  polls  and  vole,  to  couiiteract  the  suffrage  of  the  less  wor- 
thy class  of  our  female  j)opulation. 

If  they  fail  to  do  this  the  best  interests  of  the  country  must  suffer. 

It  is  now  a  problem  which  perplexes  the  brain  of  the  ablest  statesman  to  determine 
how  we  will  best  preserve  our  republican  system  as  against  the  demoralizing  influ- 
ence of  the  large  class  of  our  present  citizens  and  voters,  who,  by  reason  of  their  il- 
literacy, are  unable  to  read  or  write  the  ballot  thej'^  cast. 

Certainly  no  statesman  who  haw  carefully  observed  the  situation  would  desire  to 
add  very  largely  to  this  burden  of  ignorance.  But  who  does  not  apprehend  the  fact 
if  universal  female  suffrage  should  be  established  that  we  will,  especially  iu  the 
Southern  States,  add  a  very  large  number  to  the  voting  population  whose  ignorance 
utterly  disqualifies  them  to  discharge  the  trust.  If  our  colored  population,  w'ho  were 
60  recently  slaves  that  even  the  males  who  are  voters  have  had  but  little  opportu- 
nity to  educate  theujselves,  or  to  be  educated,  whose  ignorance  is  now  et;citiug  the 
liveliest  interest  of  our  statesuien,  are  causes  of  serious  apprehension,  what  is  to  be 
said  in  favor  of  adding  to  the  v(>ting  population  all  the  females  of  that  race,  who,  on 
account  of  the  situation  iu  which  they  have  been  ])laced,  have  had  much  less  oppor- 
tunity to  be  educated  than  even  the  males  of  their  own  race?  We  do  not  say  it  is 
their  fault  that  they  are  not  educated;  but  the  fact  is  undeniable  that  they  are 
grossly  ignorant,  with  very  few  exceptions,  and  probably  noC  one  in  a  hundred  of 
them  could  read  and  write  the  ballot  they  would  be  authorized  to  cast.  What  says 
the  statesnmn  to  the  propriety  of  adding  this  immense  mass  of  ignorance  to  the  vot- 
ing population  of  the  Union  in  its  [)resent  condition  f 

It  may  be  said  that  their  votes  C'»uld  be  offset  by  the  ballots  of  the  educated  and 
refined  ladies  of  the  white  race  in  the  same  section,  but  who  does  not  know  that  the 
ignorant  voters  would  be  at  the  polU  tn  manse,  while  the  refined  and  educated,  shrink- 
ing from  puldic  contact  on  such  occasions,  would  remain  at  home  and  attend  to  their 
domestic  and  other  important  duties,  leaving  the  country  to  the  control  of  those  who 
could  afford,  under  the  circumstances,  to  take  part  in  the  strifes  or  ])oliiics,  and  to 
come  iti  contact  with  the  unpleasant  surroundings  before  they  could  reach  the  polls. 

Are  we  ready  to  expose  the  country  to  the  demoralization,  and  our  institutions  to 
the  strain,  which  would  thus  be  jilaced  upon  them,  for  the  gratification  of  a  minority 
of  the  virtuous  and  tlui  good  of  our  female  po])ulatiou,  at  the  expense  of  the  mortifi- 
cation of  a  much  larger  majority  of  the  same  class? 

It  has  been  frequently  urged  with  great  earnestness  by  those  who  advocate  woman 
sullrage  that  the  ballot  is  necessary  to  the  women  to  enal)le  them  to  protect  them- 
selves in  securing  occupatioiiH,  and  to  enable  them  to  realize  the  same  compensation 
for  the  like  labor  which  is  received  by  men.  This  argument  is  plausible,  but  upon  a 
closer  e\amination  it  will  be  found  lo  pos^^ess  but  little  real  force.  The  price  of  labor 
is,  and  must  continue  to  be,  governed  by  the  law  of  supply  and  demand  ;  and  the  per- 
son who  has  the  most  physical  strength  to  labor,  and  the  niost  pursuits  requiring 
such  strength  open  for  employment,  will  always  command  the  higher  prices. 


WOMAN  SUFFRAGE. 


9 


Ladies  ninkc  .'xcellont  fcacliers  in  the  public  scliools  ;  many  of  thorn  are  every  way 
tilt"  equals  of  tluMr  niaU^  competitors,  and  siill  they  secure  less  waives  than  males.  The 
reason  isohvions.  'J'he  numl)er  of  ladies  who  olfcr  t  hemsci  ves  as  teachers  is  nuich  lar<;er 
than  the  nnniher  of  males  who  are  willing  to  teach.  The  larger  number  of  lemales 
otter  to  teach  because  other  occujiations  are  not  open  to  rheiu.  The  smaller  nuiuhor 
of  males  otfer  to  teach  because  other  more  ]>rotitable  occupations  are  open  to  moat 
males  who  are  competent  to  reach.  The  resulr  is  that  the  competition  for  ]iositioa3 
f.f  teachers  to  he  tilled  by  ladies  is  so  »;r»'at  as  to  reduce  the  price,  but  as  males  can- 
not be  employed  at  that  price,  and  are  necessary  in  certain  i)lacesin  the suhools,  tlu)8e 
6e.  kin<;  their  si'rvices  have  to  pay  a  hiirher  rate  for  them.  Persons  hav  in<;  a  larger 
nutnher  of  i)laces  open  to  the  n  with  fewer  co  upetitors  command  higher  w.iges  than 
t  hose  who  have  a  smal'er  numher  of  ]>Ia{'es  0[)en  to  them  witli  more  conij)  ititors.  This 
is  the  law  of  society.  It  is  the  law  of  supi)ly  and  demand,  which  cannot  be  changed 
by  legi>lation. 

1'hen  it  follows  that  the  ballot  cannot  enable  those  who  have  to  compete  with  the 
larger  number  to  command  the  same  ])rices  as  those  who  C()m])ete  with  the  smaller 
number  in  the  labor  market.  As  the  legislature  has  no  i)ower  to  regulate  in  practice 
that  of  which  the  advocates  of  female  si'.tiVage  complain  the  ballot  in  the  han<ls  of 
females  could  not  aid  its  regulation.  The  ballot  cannot  impart  to  the  female  phys- 
ical strength  which  she  does  not  possess,  nor  can  it  o])en  to  her  i)ursuifs  which  she 
does  not  have  ])hysical  ability  to  etigage  in;  and  as  long  as  she  lacks  the  physical 
Btrength  to  compete  with  nun  in  the  ditferetit  departments  of  labor  there  will  be 
more  competition  in  her  de]iartmen(,  and  she  must  necessarily  leceive  le^s  wages. 

But  it  is  claimed  again  that  females  should  have  the  ballot  as  a  ]n'otection  against 
the  tyr.-inny  of  bad  husbands.  This  is  also  delusive.  Jf  the  husband  is  brutal,  ar- 
bitrary, or  tyrannical,  and  tyrannizes  over  her  at  home,  the  ballot  in  her  hatids  would 
be  no  protection  against  such  injustice,  but  the  husband  who  compelled  h«'r  to  con- 
form to  his  wishes  in  other  res])ects  would  also  compel  her  to  use  the  ballot  if  she 
,p<»ssessed  it,  as  he  might  ]dease  to  dictate.  The  ballot  could  therefore  be  of  no  as- 
sistance to  the  w  ife  in  such  case,  nor  could  it  heal  family  strifes  or  dissensions.  On 
the  contrary,  one  of  the  gravest  objections  to  ])laciiig  the  ballot  in  the  hands  of  the 
fejuale  sex  is  that  ir  would  promote  unhappiuess  and  dissensions  in  the  family  circle. 
There  should  be  unity  in  the  family. 

At  ])resent  the  man  represents  the  family  in  meeting  the  demands  of  the  law  and 
of  society  uptui  the  family.  So  far  as  the  rougher,  coarser  duties  are  concernr'd,  the 
man  represents  the  family,  and  the  individuality  of  the  woman  is  not  brought  into 
prominence,  but  when  the  ballot  is  placed  in  the  iiands  of  th<'  woman  her  individu- 
ality is  enlarged  and  she  is  expected  to  answer  for  herself  the  demands  of  the  law  and 
of  society  on  her  individual  account,  and  not  as  the  weaker  member  of  the  family  to 
answer  by  her  husband.  This  naturally  draws  her  out  from  tlie  dignified  and  culti- 
vated retim-ment  other  womanly  jiosition,  and  brings  her  into  a  closer  contact  with  the 
rcmgher  elements  of  society,  which  tends  to  <lestroy  that  higher  reverence  and  respect 
which  her  refinement  and  diunity  in  the  relation  of  wife  ami  mother  have  always  in- 
spired in  those  who  a|)proached  her  in  her  useful  and  honorable  retirement. 

When  she  becomes  a  voter  she  will  be  more  or  less  of  a  politician,  and  will  form 
political  allianci'S.  or  unite  with  ]iolitical  parties,  which  will  fiequently  be  antago- 
nistic to  those  to  which  her  husband  belonij;s.  This  will  introduce  into  the  family 
circle  new  elements  of  disagreement  and  discord,  which  will  frequently  end  in  un- 
happy divisions,  if  not  in  s»  ]iai ation  or  divorce.  This  must  frequently  occur  aaIicd 
8he  becomes  an  active  politician,  identified  with  a  party  which  is  distasteful  to  her 
husband.  On  the  other  hand,  if  she  unites  with  her  husband  in  party  associations, 
ami  votes  with  him  on  all  occasions,  so  as  not  to  disturb  the  h  irmony  and  happiness 
of  rhe  fan  ily.  then  the  ballot  is  of  no  service,  as  it  simply  du])licates  tl^e  vote  of  the 
male  on  each  s'de  of  the  question,  and  leaves  the  result  the  same. 

Again,  if  the  fa.ihily  is  the  unit  of  soci-ty,  and  the  State  is  composed  of  an  aggreg.v 
tioii  of  families,  then  it  is  important  to  society  that  there  be  as  many  happy  familiea 
a-*  possilde,  and  it  becomes  the  duty  of  man  and  woman  alike  to  unite  in  the  holy  re- 
lation of  matrimony. 

As  this  is  rhe.  only  legal  and  proper  mode  of  rendering  obedience  to  th«  early  com- 
mand to  multii)ly  and  ie]>lenish  the  ear.h,  whatever  tends  to  discourage  the  holy  ro- 
bition  of  matrimony,  is  in  disobedience  of  this  command,  and  any  change  which  en- 
courages smh  disoliedience  is  violative  of  the  Divine  law,  and  cannot  result  in  ad- 
Yanta«;e  to  the  State,  Before  forming  this  ivlntion  it  is  the  duty  (.f  young  men  who 
have  to  take  u])ou  themselves  the  responsibilities  of  providing  for  ami  protecting  the 
family  to  select  some  profession  or  pursuir.  that  is  most  congenial  to  their  tastes,  uud 
in  which  they  will  be  most  likely  to  be  successful;  but  this  is  not  permitted  to  the 
young  ladies,  or  if  permitted,  it  cannot  practically  carried  out  after  matrimony. 
As  it  might  fre(iuently  happen  that  the  young  man  had  selected  one  ])rofessiou  or  pur- 
suit and  the  young  l.kly  another:  the  result  would  be  that  after  marriage  she  must 
drop  the  profession  or  pursuit  of  her  choice  and  employ  herself  iu  the  sacred  duties  of 

S.  Rep.  70,  pt.  2  2 


10 


% 

WOMAN  SUFFRAGE. 


wife  and  mother  at  liome,  and  ift  rearing,  educating,  and  elevating  the  family,  wliUe 
the  husband  jjursues  the  profession  of  liis  choice. 

It  may  be  said,  however,  that  there  is  a  class  of  young  ladies  who  do  not  choose  to 
marry,  and  who  select  professions  or  avocatious  and  follow  them  for  a  livelihood. 
This  is  true,  but  this  ch\ss  compared  with  the  number  who  unite  in  matrimony  with 
the  husbands  of  their  choice  is  comparatively  very  small ;  and  it  isthe  duty  of  society  to 
encourage  the  increase  of  marriages  rather  than  of  celibacy.  If  the  larger  number  of 
females  select  pursuits  or  professions  which  requite  them  to  decline  marriage,  society 
to  that  extent  is  deprived  of  the  advantages  resulting  from  the  increase  of  pojiulation  , 
by  marriage. 

It  is  said  by  those  who  have  examined  the  question  closely  that  the  largest  number 
of  divorces  is  now  found  in  the  communities  where  the  advocates  of  female  suffrage 
are  most  numerous,  and  where  the  individuality  of  wonmn  as  related  to  her  husband, 
which  such  a  doctrine  inculcates,  is  increased  to  the  greatest  extent.  It  this  be  true, 
and  it  seems  to  be  well  authenticated,  it  is  a  strong  plea  in  the  interest  of  the  family 
and  of  society  against  granting  the  petition  of  the  advocates  of  woman  sutfrage. 
After  all,  this  is  a  local  question,  which  properly  belongs  to  the  difl'erent,  States  of  the 
Union,  each  acting  for  itself,  and  to  the  Territories  of  the  Union,  when  not  acting  in 
coniiict  with  the  Coi^stitution  and  laws  of  the  United  States. 

The  fact  that  a  State  adopts  the  rule  of  female  suffrage  neither  increases  nor  di- 
minishes its  power  in  the  Union,  as  the  number  of  Representatives  in  Congress  to 
which  each  State  is  entitled,  and  the  number  of  members  of  the  electoral  college  ap- 
pointed by  each,  is  determined  by  its  aggregate  X)Oi)ulation,  and  not  by  the  jjropor- 
tion  of  its  voting  population,  so  long  as  no  race  or  class  is  excluded  from  the  exercise 
of  the  right  of  sutlrage. 

While  the  undersigned  would  vote  against  female  suffrage  if  the  question  were  to 
arise  in  th(nr  respective  States,  they  admit  the  power  of  the  States  over  the  subject- 
matter.  Entertaining  these  views,  they  protest  against  a  cousiitutional  amendment 
which  w^ould  confer  the  right  of  female  suffrage  in  all  parts  of  the  Union,  without  regard 
to  the  wishes  of  the  different  States  at  anytime  after  the  adoption  of  the  said  amend- 
ment. They  believe  that  the  noble,  true,  good  women  of  the  country  should  be  heard, 
and  as  an  expression  of  their  views  there  is  hereto  appended  Woman's  Protest  against 
Woman  Suflrage,"  known  as  the  Lorain  Memorial  against  Woman  .Suffrage,  ])resented 
to  the  Ohio  legislature  and  signed  by  a  large  number  of  the  most  thoughtful  and  in- 
telligent women  of  the  cities  of  Oberliu  and  Elyria,  Ohio,  iucluding  lady  teachers  and 
wives  of  professors  in  Oberliu  College. 

JOSEPH  E.  BROWN. 
F.  M.  COCKRELL. 


woman's  protest  against  woman  suffrage. 

We  acknowledge  no  inferiority  to  men.  We  claim  to  have  no  less  ability  to  per- 
form the  duties  which  God  has  imposed  upon  us  than  they  have  to  perform  those  im- 
posed upon  theuj. 

We  believe  that  God  has  wisely  and  well  adapted  each  sex  to  the  proper  perform- 
ance of  the  duties  of  each. 

We  believe  our  trusts  to  be  as  important  and  sacred  as  any  that  exist  on  earth. 

We  believe  woman  suffrage  would  relatively  lessen  the  iutiuenceof  the  intelligent 
and  trui',  and  increase  the  intiutnce  of  the  ignoi  ant  and  vicious. 

We  feel  that  our  present  duties  till  up  the  whole  measure  of  our  time  and  ability, 
and  are  such  as  none  but  ourselves  can  pertbrm.  Our  ai)pre<*iation  of  their  impor- 
tance requires  us  to  protest  against  all  efforts  to  infringe  upon  our  rights  by  imposing 
upon  us  those  obligations  which  cannot  be  separated  from  suffrage,  but  which,  as  we 
think,  cannot  be  performed  by  us  without  the  sacrifice  of  the  highest  interests  of  our 
families  and  of  society. 

It  is  our  fathers,  brothers,  husbands,  and  sons  who'represent  us  at  the  ballot-box. 
Our  fathers  and  our  brothers  love  us  ;  our  husbands  are  our  choice  and  one  with  us; 
our  sons  are  what  we  make  1  hem.  We  are  content  that  they  represent  us  in  the  corn- 
field, on  the  battle-lield,  and  at  the  ballot-box,  and  we  ihcm  in  the  school-room,  at  the 
fireside,  ami  at  the  cradle,  believing  our  representation  even  at  the  ballot-box  to  be 
thus  more  full  and  impartial  than  it  would  be  were  the  views  of  the  few  who  wish 
suffrage  adopted,  contrary  to  the  judgment  of  the  many. 

We  do  therefore  respectfully  protest  against  any  legislation  to  establish  "  woman 
suffrage"  in  yur  land,  or  in  any  part  of  it. 

o 

I  SEYMOUR  DURST 


